The claim that India purchased 28 islands from the Maldives is Fake
A post claiming that “India bought 28 islands from Maldives. Maldives hands over its 28 Islands to India. President Muizzu signed the agreement” is being shared on social media (here, here, and here). Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: India bought 28 islands from the Maldives, following an agreement signed by President Muizzu, who has officially ceded the islands to India.
Fact: There are no official reports about the Government of India purchasing islands from the Maldives. However, the Government of India recently began funding a water and sanitation project in the Maldives in August 2024. President Mohammad Muizzu also mentioned on X that India has been allocated a water and sewage project covering 28 islands. The Indian government’s PIB fact-check has also clarified on Twitter that this is false information. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
We found no official reports on a relevant keyword search indicating that the government of India purchased 28 islands in the Maldives. However, we came across several news articles about India initiating a water and sanitation project covering 28 islands in the Maldives (here, here, and here).
According to these reports, Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar officially handed over a water and sanitation project to the Maldives on 10 August 2024. The project, funded by India with an investment of approximately Rs 923 crore, is set to benefit 28 islands, which account for 7% of the Maldivian population. It was funded by the EXIM Bank of India under the Indian Line of Credit facility. Jaishankar described this project as “the largest climate adaptation implemented in Maldives with international collaboration.”
Upon further investigation, we found that the Ministry of External Affairs issued a press release on 11 August 2024, stating, “At the President’s Office, EAM and Foreign Minister jointly inaugurated, in the presence of President Muizzu, India’s Line of Credit (LoC)-assisted project of water and sewerage network in 28 islands of Maldives.”
The Ministry of External Affairs uploaded all these meetings to its official YouTube channel with the title “Virtual Inauguration of Water and Sanitation Projects in 28 Islands of Maldives.” External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar also shared about the event on X. Additionally, Maldives President Mohammad Muizzu posted on X, stating “It was a pleasure to meet @DrSJaishankar today and join him in the official handover of water and sewerage projects in 28 islands of the Maldives.”
The Indian government’s PIB fact-check also posted on Twitter stating that Government of India buying islands from Maldives is fake news.
To sum up, the claim that India purchased 28 islands from the Maldives is fake.